[maynard001]

Sorry in advance if this has been covered to death. I searched under "Total immersion", "TI", and "TI Swim" but didn't get any hits.<br><br>
I really suck at swimming. I've been a serious runner for a couple of years and have committed to doing an Oly Tri in May. The swim has got me freaked out. I started swimming a month or so ago and I still am gasping for breath after a few lengths.<br><br>
I heard about TI and poked around on their website...sounded like a good thing. Has anyone here tried it?<br><br>
-Jason

 

[jkaiser20]

I think everyone will agree that TI is not bad. Some folks swear big time by it, other not so much.<br><br>
I think for someone who is not a swimmer (you are not alone, I'm in that boat) TI is excellent. The concepts are sound.<br><br>
I have read a book but never saw a video. I recommend getting the video. Best would be attending a clinic, but that is normally not feasible.

 

[jkaiser20]

Oh yeah, don't freak out. May is a long way off. Heck, its next year! Plenty of time.

 

[ericd256]

i liked it alot,i even went to a swim clinic they put on.

 

[mmoonptdeux]

Hey Jason - I was one of those serious runners/suck-ass swimmers too that delved into tris this year (I couldn't freestyle worth crap as late as April this year, and I was going for a mid-Sept triathlon.)<br><br>
TI is worth looking into - I read the book (the Triathlon Swimming Made Easy is the better read than the original book, IMHO) and bought the DVD. It'll definitely get you to the passable/decent level at the very least.<br><br>
I think early on, you need to focus more on the drills and getting the breathing patterns down more than the swimming itself. Once you get your form and breathing down, the swimming will become easier and the endurance will start building (and you might surprise yourself how quickly that comes - it sure was surprising to me.)

 

[MBannon]

You tried searching this forum? If so, no wonder you didn't find anything - this forum was created about 4 days ago!<br><br>
As for TI, I agree the concepts are sound. It's great for beginners, I highly recommend it. Once you've mastered most of the drills and are comfortable swimming long distances (a half mile or more, continuous), put it on the shelf and forget about it for a year or two. At that point you need to develop your own style and figure out what works best for you. Then pick the book back up and skim it again for a refresher.<br><br>
Just know that most "real" swimmers (you know, like "real runners" whatever that means) do not place nearly as much emphasis on stroke count as TI does. They (we?) pay attention to stroke count, but it's not the be-all end-all that TI preaches it to be.

 

[JWcrew]

The issue tends to be that many people who follow it tend to do lot's and lot's of drill but miss the more difficult interval/speed workouts. Their swimming improves to a point because their form has improved and they are more efficient in the water, but then they stagnate because they are unwilling to put the effort into boring/long/grueling workouts.<br><br>
JMOYMMV<br><br>
Jon

 

[mmoonptdeux]

I wanted to give a big <b>1!</b> to both these points - TI will get you to the point where you can handle the distances and get your form in order. And where the OP is currently at, I would say that would be his main concern with his oly coming up in May<br><br>
With that said, you will get to the point, provided you put in the swim time, where you'll need to do more than drill work to gain swim speed. That's happened to me - the overseer of some OWS sessions that I attended this summer suggested that while my form could use some tweaking, my swimming would benefit most by putting in some interval work and getting stronger in the water.

 

[Cashmason]

Agreed. It is fantastic for those just learning to do freestyle swimming for distance. Once you are experienced at distance swimming, you can move beyond TI.<br><br>
I highly recommend you either buy the video or rent it. The book is good, but some stuff the drawings in the book don't convey as well as the video does.

 

[maynard001]

Great...thanks for all the replies. I'll definitely order the book and the DVDs. I would like to attend one of the classes (they have one in my city in February) but $500 is pretty steep. I think I'll try to books and videos...hopefully that will be enough.<br><br>
-jason

 

[JWcrew]

<br>
I do go back and do drills quite frequently. What I lke to do is to mix them into my speed sets so that you get the reinforcement of the proper form combined with a strong effort which is where my form begins to break down. I do a set of 10X50 drill/strong by 25.<br><br>
One comment that has been made to me is that my form is really good, however I'm concentrating too much on maintaining my form, so I'm swimming too tight and need to relax and become more fluid. So I'm thinking to much and not getting into that Zen like state that I should be acheiving on my long swims.<br><br><br>
Only 4 days old, my hat's off to the people that set this forum up in such short time while also managing a server changeover.<br><br>
Jon

 

[LeftRightRepeat]

I bought my wife <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=cypU4LPwIBsC" target="_blank">Triathlon Swimming Made Easy</a> for Chirstmas. Sure hope she finishes it soon!!